Death of an Interior Decorator
by CrazieStarGurl
Summary: Tomoyo Daidouji is an interior decorator. After meeting with a new client, she finds out her husband is having an affair and her daughter ran away from home. Escaping from pain, she pointlessly burries herself in her decorating, til Eriol enters her life.


Death of an Interior Decorator

I wrapped the ribbon around my wrist. Ever since my mother died, I always wrapped it around my wrist as a momentum to her. I wish I knew her better. I can barely recollect any memories of her because she died when I was a baby. The only thing my father didn't burn was the ribbon. My father didn't really talk about her because he started a new life with another woman shortly after the funeral. He had three other children with her, and I was still living with them. But I always felt like I was burden to my father. He directed most of his loving attention towards his other children, my half bothers. They were loved more by my father and their mother than I was. I was the outsider. It couldn't be helped. After all, I was the only lasting memory of his dead wife.

The bow was secure, and I had my best skirt on. I tried French braiding my hair today, and it looked rather regal for a casual breakfast at the café. I focused my attention to my cheeks in the mirror. Too much blush! I quickly wiped it off. I was meeting a new client, and as an interior decorator, first impressions could make all the difference in my job. I applied my mascara and my eyeliner, careful not to make any mistakes.

"Sakura! Get up! You have to go to school." I shouted at my daughter. When there was no answer, I went to knock on her door. It was plastered with 'Get out' and 'Do not enter' signs, and was always locked. I don't know why she does it. I told her not to, but she doesn't listen to me these days. I knocked even harder this time.

"I'm awake! Go away!" Came a sound from the other side.

"You better not let your father catch you talking to me like that!" I shouted back at her.

I grabbed my purse and left the house to meet my new client. I didn't have time to argue with her.

I arrived at the café on time, and my client was already sitting at a table. She was a young woman, with the largest diamond ring I have ever seen. She took off her sunglasses, and shook my hand.

"My name is Ayase Mitsuki. It's a pleasure to meet you, Daidouji-san." She said, her sleek black hair falling off her shoulders.

"Good morning. I'm Daidouji Tomoyo." I said smiling. The air around this woman was intense. The shocking blue dress was one of those dresses that were so expensive, you had to sell your house to afford only half of the price. She ordered her tea and her breakfast with frivolous desire, and didn't even look at the price. This woman was commanding. I commented on her diamond ring.

She put down the cup of tea from her lips, and smiled. "Yes. I'm engaged to a wonderful man, and the wedding is something I wanted to talk to you about. You see, I have seen some of your work, and I feel your style, and your ingenuity will make my wedding the wedding of my dreams."

I blushed. "Well, thank you. I am very flattered. I really didn't think my work was 'famous'. I consider myself to be low-key, and I never really associated myself with any clients who are well-known."

"Of course." She interrupted. "Now, I know my requests may be a little different than what you may be used to. I would've gone to a more well-known decorator, but I think you are perfect for the job."

She was the one who talked. I just sat there taking notes on what she wanted for her wedding. As I jotted down the flowers she wanted, the colors, the themes, I realized it was going to be tough. Some of the flowers she wanted would have to be imported from Brazil. When I told her it might be a problem, she said, "I have complete faith in you." I even brought up the mounting budget.

"Don't worry about it. My husband to be will pay for everything." She smiled and giggled. I struggled a chuckle, as I realized what kind of woman this client was. She wasn't marrying for love. I looked at my watch, and thought about my husband. I wonder what he's doing at work right now. I didn't catch him when he went to work this morning, and I really needed to talk to him about Sakura's attitude. But he's been out of the house so much, I probably only saw him for 30 minutes in this whole entire week. I twirled my fingers around the ribbon on my wrist, and glanced around the café. The room was circular, and the colors were lively and bright, with a floral carpet lined on the floor. The drapes stood still against the large windows that looked towards the parking lot. A giant vase with hundreds of roses in it sat in the center of the room. At the entrance, couples walked in, and the women pointed excitedly at the roses. "I'll get you some roses after breakfast." The men would say. Hmm…when was the last time my husband brought me to breakfast and bought me roses?

Ayase interrupted my thoughts.

"My my, look at the time! I have an appointment with my hairdresser in an hour and I have to get my hair ready for the appointment! I'll call you sometime about the plans. Thank you, Daidouji-san. I put my faith in you!" She said, and left, leaving me to foot the bill.

As I pulled away from the cafe, I thought about my meeting with the woman and realized I would have to put in extra effort if I want to make her wedding her 'dream wedding'. Her desires, or demands, were not something I usually did for clients. But nonetheless, a client is a client, and as an interior decorator, it is my job to make her fantasies come true even if it means having to live up to her demands.

Maybe I was thinking too much when I failed to notice the cat crossing the street. My car swerved and fell into the ditch at the side of the road. I must've been out for hours, because when I woke up, it was dark out. My head felt like a billion forks were being jabbed into my brain. I sat in my seat frozen. I was fine, but there was no way the car could get out of the ditch. I turned on the headlights to make a signal. Soon, a man came and started tapping on my window. I turned my head towards him, but still in shock, I didn't know what to do. My hand slowly reached for the handle. Trembling, I got out of the car, and collapsed at his feet.

"Miss, are you okay?" He said. "Are you hurt anywhere? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

His voice was so familiar. I looked at his face, but his eyes were blocked with his sunglasses.

"I'm okay." I said. "But my car isn't."

"I'll have that dealt with in no time. Come here, I'll drive you to the hospital." He said, and I slowly got up on my feet. The man was putting my arm around the back of his neck for support. In doing so, he dropped his sunglasses. Still sensitive from the shock, I screamed, and we both fell against the car.

"What's wrong, Miss?" He looked at me strangely for a second. "Daidouji Tomoyo?"

"What? How do you know my name? Were you stalking me?" I screamed, trying to get away from him. What if he really was stalking me? What if he wanted to do more than just get me out of the ditch?

But he only laughed. "Don't' you recognize me, Tomoyo-chan? It's me! Eriol! Hiiragisawa Eriol!"

I paused for a minute to think for a second. Eriol…Eriol…I looked at him. This man had dark blue hair; strangely similar to a friend I had when I was in school. The eyes were dark and mysterious too, even though they were hidden behind his glasses. Then it hit me. I screamed, and started laughing.

"Eriol! I remember now!"

"Wow. After 15 years, I didn't expect to meet you again in a situation like this." Eriol tapped the car. "Let's get out of here first, and then we'll talk, okay?"

When we got out of the ditch, he offered to drive me to the hospital, but I said I didn't need to.

"I need to go home, and get my insurance papers, and call my husband. He's going to kill me for this."

"That's quite alright. I'll drive you home to your husband. You're married now?" He led me to his car.

"Yeah. For about 12 years now." I said, thinking of my husband.

"That's quite a long time. I'm happy for you." Eriol said. "I haven't talked to you since school ended, and of course, things have been so hectic for me. Work has really pinned me down."

"Me too. I'm finally an interior decorator!" I said enthusiastically. Eriol was one of my best friends in high school, and was one of the few who knew my ambition in life was to be an interior decorator.

"That's great! You made it! You accomplished your dream! I always knew you would. That's what I liked about you, Tomoyo. You're strong. You'll do anything to get what you want."

We talked about our high school days, and even brought up the subject of some of our friends.

"Sakura and Syaoran really hit it off, didn't they? Last time I heard of them, they moved to Hong Kong and got married."

Sakura. She was my best friend in high school. I remember the days when I used to decorate her room, and make the clothes that filled her closet. I remember opening the windows in her room, and the wind would gently blow on the pink drapes. Everything in her room was pink, and she would giggle incessantly over how I was the best decorator ever. I would giggle too, but her laughs lifted my heart more so than anyone else. When my first child was born, I named her after Sakura, just as I promised to do. I loved her as much as my friend Sakura. When I told Eriol this, he wasn't surprised. He knew Sakura as much as I did.

"We've all gone to our separate paths after school, haven't we? You're married, and I'm sure your daughter, Sakura, is very beautiful. I would like to say that I've done the same, but work has stopped me from doing so. Today is actually the first day of my long long break, and I really needed it. Work really has been driving me up the wall." I learned he is the CEO of a large manufacturing company, and makes millions a day. Judging by his personality, I wouldn't have guessed he was became successful. His attitude, his gestures, the way he talks is the same as when we were in high school.

We arrived at my house sooner than I expected. Eriol walked me to the door, and I dug into my purse to find the house keys.

"Thanks, Eriol. It's been great talking to you. Have a good break." I said as I took the keys from my purse. He then took his hand and wrapped it around mine.

"You take care of yourself, okay?" He said smiling. I stood on my porch five minutes after he left. It's one of his little habits, even when we were growing up. To Eriol, holding his friend's hands didn't mean the same to most people. IT was one of his many gestures that made him so loveable. Even after he took it away, I could still feel its warmth. When I was young, it didn't mean anything, but this was the first time in over a decade that I've made contact with him, and when his hand held mine, I could feel my heart suddenly beat faster.

It honestly felt great to talk to someone from my childhood. My friends really were the only people I had when I was growing up. My family wasn't really a family and the people I could depend on were the people I met in school. It was true I lost touch with all my friends when I graduated, even Sakura. But meeting Eriol like that was like temporary escape from my horrible day. Horrible day? …Oh right…my car crash.

I reached for the phone after I closed the door. It started ringing. Maybe it's the insurance agency. Boy, they're fast. I picked up the receiver.

"Hello, Daidouji Tomoyo here." I said.

"Hello, Daidouji-san. This is Toru Uotani of Seiyu High School. I am sorry to tell you that your daughter did not attend school today. Is there any particular reason why? Is she ill?" I dropped the receiver, and raced to her room.

Pounding my fist against her door, hoping she'd hear, I shouted for her, but no one answered. I turned to search every room, even the cupboards, but she was nowhere to be found. I took a wire, and unlocked the door to her room. On her bed, I found a note.

"Mom, I hate this house. I hate living with you and dad. I am leaving with my boyfriend. Don't bother trying to find me.

Have a nice life.

-Sakura"

This has got to be a mistake. My daughter can't have a boyfriend! She can't run away from home! She is not like that!

I called my husband. I called his cell number, but no one picked up. I even called his office, but his secretary said he was busy. Frustrated, I called a taxi to drive me to his office. I ran past the front doors, virtually out of breath.

Panting, I told his secretary that I needed to see him right away.

"Err, no, Daidouji-san. You can't!" She shouted. Angry, I demanded a reason, but didn't wait for one. I opened the door to his office, and I nearly crashed to the floor. A blonde girl with the shortest mini skirt I have ever seen was on my husband's lap, with his tie in her bony little fingers, kissing him. They parted when they saw me. A tiny thread of saliva connecting their lips with each others. I couldn't believe my eyes. I didn't know what to do. I wanted to slap him on the face, and pull that girl's hair off her head but at the same time, I wanted to fall on my knees and cry like a baby.

I stood there, knowing that the tears were swelling in the side of my eyes. I swallowed the heavy ball in my throat, and a river ran down my cheeks, ruining the mascara and eyeliner I put on this morning.

"I crashed the car today. It's in the ditch right now." I said trying to smile. "Sakura didn't go to school today. She ran away with her boyfriend." I blinked and a waterfall of tears found its own space on my shirt. I could hardly see my husband through the tears blurring my vision. "But I guess it doesn't matter to you right now, because you're too preoccupied with that whore."

The taxi was waiting for me outside, and I got in. I didn't know how he drove, or how many tears I cried, but I finally told him to stop at a bridge. I was all alone when the taxi left. I climbed onto the railing, and sat there swinging my legs, facing the running river. I was still crying, and the tears dropped onto the water below the bridge. The water rippled, and when it stopped, I could see a girl staring back at me in the water. That girl was someone I didn't want to know. That girl is the stupidest girl I have ever known in my whole entire life. How could she have been so dumb? How could she believe that she could finally get away from the pain her so called family caused her when her new so-called family is making her feel just as much pain? She should've realized all along that her husband was cheating on her, and that her daughter hated her. How could let herself believe that she could finally find happiness? I think she's so pitiful. Now she's going to have to file for divorce, and get the police to find her delinquent daughter.

The sun was starting to rise, and a gentle wind starting drying my tears. A piece of paper flew into my lap, and I looked at it. It was a beautiful pale yellow.

"Hmm," I thought, wiping off the tear with the ribbon. "This could make a very nice color for the drapes at Ayase's wedding…"

----------to be continued

Hello. It's been quite a while since I wrote a fanfiction. 3 years I think? I still love Card Captor Sakura, and I think I always will. It is such a wonderful story and I want to have a bit of fun with it's loveable characters. ) Please review this chapter. My friend read it, and she said it was a bit confusing. I'm not really surprised because I'm experimenting with some writing styles, but, please do review. D


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